Saturday, 15 April 2017

Iran-Controlled Militia Groups Playing Key Role in Operations in Mosul, Kirkuk

The
spokesman of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (P.M.F.) reiterated
today that its forces will play a leading role in military operations in
the Iraqi provinces of Nineveh and Kirkuk – particularly in the
strategic city of Tal Afar in western Mosul. “The Popular Mobilization
Forces have a commanding and extensive presence and participation in
operational zones in Nineveh Province,” P.M.F. spokesman Ahmad al-Assadi
said in an exclusive interview with Fars News Agency,
an outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps
(I.R.G.C.). “The Popular Mobilization Forces will certainly take part in
liberating Tal Afar. The operation will begin in a few days.” He
further explained: “At present, these forces are stationed between Tal
Abta in the south and Sinjar in the north of Nineveh Province. In
addition to repelling Daesh [Islamic State] attacks in this zone,
[P.M.F] also assists other forces that are participating in operations
to liberate the remaining regions in the northwestern front and western
parts of Mosul.” The P.M.F. commander also revealed that the militia
forces will also be part of military operations in al-Hawija District
and its surrounding regions in Kirkuk Province.

Comment: The Iraqi security forces began military
operations in western Mosul in February after they recaptured eastern
parts of the city from the Islamic State. But prior to that, it was
Iran-backed militia groups that led operations against the Islamic State
in western Mosul and they still hold significant influence in the
region. About 60 percent
of the western flank of Mosul has been retaken, while terrorists still
control the rest – including the center of the strategic city of Tal
Afar. Difficult terrain and population density have reportedly slowed
down operations in western Mosul. The Islamic State using local
population as human shield has further compounded the operations.
But while the ultimate seizure of the region from the Islamic State
is certain, post-liberation security and stability in Mosul – and in
Iraq in general – is far from guaranteed. For now, the Islamic State as
the common enemy has brought all sides together. The Iraqi security
forces, Iran-controlled Shiite militia groups, and U.S.-led coalition,
and other Iraqi factions are currently all battling the Islamic State.
But once the common enemy is defeated, divisions and rivalries will
intensify.

In western Mosul, Iran-controlled groups pose the biggest threat to
the region’s security. The prominent role of sectarian Shiite militias
under the command of the I.R.G.C. worries Iraqi Sunnis and regional
Sunni states. These groups have committed engaged in acts of arbitrary
killing, kidnapping, looting and rights abuses in the past. It is feared
that they may engage in revenge killing against Sunni inhabitants of
western Mosul once the Islamic State is ousted.
The P.M.F. consists of militia forces largely from Shiite but also
other Iraqi ethnic and religious groups, and the alliance has now been
legally integrated into the Iraqi security forces. However, the most
powerful units with the P.M.F. are controlled by the I.R.G.C., which
poses threat not only to the Iraqi security but also to U.S. military
advisers who are assisting Iraqi security forces in Mosul an across the
country. Recently, Iran-linked Iraqi militia groups have launched a
vicious propaganda campaign against the United States and pressured the Baghdad government to “expel” American forces from Iraq.